Peabody said...

You can make your own. Use evoo or safflower oil (the lesser sat. fat of
the two).

Just read the labels. You know not all evoo or other oils are created
equal, nutritionally.

Hain's safflower has a gram or two edge less sat fat compared to the evoo,
and more mono than polyunsat. fat. And it doesn't impart any flavor.

Make your own. Packets probably just mean additives, preservatives and
extra sodium, etc.

Andy

I keep the oil and vinegar on the table without herbs and it works
fine.

I've also mixed 1/3rd olive oil, 1/3rd canola oil, 1/3rd red wine
vinegar
for the liquid and added packets of dried Italian Seasoning from the
store.  Thee are usually a couple of brands available.  None of the
pre-mixed packets are as good and Newman's Own, though.

The best I've made was 1/3rd eevo, 1/3rd walnut oil, 1/3rd wine wine
vinegar with a dash of Balsamic.  To this I diced up fresh garden
green herbs and some smashed garlic cloves.  Shake and let the
flavors marry for at least a day then shake before shaking onto the
salad.  Depending on the year we've had herb gardens hanging from
the rail on the deck, or against the wall in the back yard, or this
year
we're doing hydroponic.  Two types of basil, thyme, parsely, mint,
chives, dill came as a matched set so that's ths year's assortment.
Diced basil, thyme, chives and garlic work nicely as a spice mixture
for salad dressing.

Best way is to buy your own extra virgin and add a nice quality
vinegar. You don't really need other stuff, but if you want, it's easy
to grind some fresh pepper in, or add a bit of garlic or herbs, etc...
to change up the taste.

I just keep olive oil, and add balsamic vinegar or lemon juice or lime
juice as I feel like it. That's good enough for me most days, I
usually go half and half, but sometimes I go closer to 2/3 olive
oil/1/3 vinegar.

If you want to add herbs, I just start a little earlier and let the
herbs and garlic sit a bit in the oil for a while.

You may be able to find an all olive oil dressing in the supermarket,
I did once (don't remember brand though, but it did solidify in the
fridge, so you had to get it out beforehand or warm it a little before
use. That's why they are hard to find pre-made, because most folks
just want to go straight from fridge to salad.

I heard once that the designation virgin or extra virgin for olive oil is
based on a taste test, done in Europe.